Windows 10 cumulative update arrives automatically

Installs via force restart

Windows 10 users should get ready for yet another patch hitting their machines.

Microsoft is rolling out KB3081424 to Windows 10 PCs as a cumulative update that includes every other patch so far applied to Windows 10 since it was launched a little over a week ago.

If users have turned on automatic updates it will be downloaded and installed straight away and the advice is to save all work because a force restart has to be initiated to make sure that everything installs correctly.

Anyone that has the feature enabled and regularly leaves their machine switched on overnight with work unsaved should be warned that the PC will initiate the update and restart whenever it sees fit. This doesn't apply to online services like Word Online but for regular versions of Microsoft Office it could prove to be a problem.

Variable sizes

The latest Windows 10 update will vary in size depending on how up-to-date your system is and if previous updates or patches have been installed, only the new fixes contained in the package will be applied.

At the last check 18.5 million people had downloaded the new operating system and installed it. With Windows 10 available as a free upgrade from Windows 7 and 8.1 for a full 12 months, it guarantees that more will install in the coming weeks and months.